THE TRUTH IN MURDER: DENISE MINA'S THE GOOD LIAR

Denise Mina is a crime writer who always has something t say. Even her lightest books carry weight. With The Good Liar, she uses a murder case and its aftermath to look at class, institutions, and how the truth has become compromised in out times.

At the center of the story is forensics expert Claudia Atkins O'Shea. We meet her as she is about to speak at The Royal College Of Forensic Scientists about her cutting edge blood splatter analysis that helped lead to a conviction in a high profile murder case. As she heads toward the podium she thinks of her plans to reveal the real truth that will sink her career, several others, and start a chain of trouble.

We then go back to when she is called to the upscale apartment of Jonathan "Jonty" Stewart, the close friend of her mentor Lord Phillip Ardmore. Jonty and and his young fiance have been stabbed to death and his bodyguard shot. The police pin it on Jonty's drug addictive ne'er-do-well son William. Claudia has her doubts and notices similarities to her own husband's murder. . She investigates beyond her forensics wheelhouse, often advised my colleagues to back off.

Mina gives a sharp take on London society and its police and courts. Claudia being from Glasgow, Scotland gives us an outsider's view from the inside. Everyone, including her, is compromised from both the politics of their workplace as well as their personal history. To break the corruption caused will not only will a personal price be paid, but an agreement between government and citizens as well. Mina delves into this so deeply she makes Claudia's speech even more suspenseful as it would be if she was stalking a killer.

The Good Liar, Claudia and her case prove how elusive facts are now. Denise Mina shows how much the truth can hurt and how we pursue easier beliefs instead, even if it harms the big picture. She gives us a better understanding of why that picture becomes less clear each year.